He added that Hamas has served as a role model to the Brotherhood in its reconciliation with the Fatah movement and in closing the recent prisoner swap deal with Israel.

The Brotherhood renounced violence in the 1970s, but it supports Hamas in its “resistance” against Israel…

Haniyeh described Hamas as the “jihadi movement of the Brotherhood with a Palestinian face.” He said his visit to the Brotherhood center would confuse and frighten Israel.

“Our presence with the Brotherhood threatens the Israeli entity,” Haniyeh said according to MENA.

Who benefits more from this photo op, the Brotherhood or Hamas? On the one hand, the MB gets a shot of Islamist cred before the last round of Egypt’s elections by hugging it out on camera with the tip of the jihadi “liberationist” spear against Israel. They might need it too: Official results from the second round of the elections show the Salafists finishing within single digits of the Brotherhood and nearly 20 points ahead of the third-place liberal party. The Salafists improved from the first round to the second and can only benefit in the final round from all the media attention they’re getting, so the Haniyeh endorsement might be useful in preventing the Brotherhood from being “out-fundied.”

Hamas gains leverage from the Brotherhood’s show of solidarity over Israel and, especially, Fatah. A public spectacle like today’s is one way of signaling that future Israeli attacks on Hamas might have consequences for the Camp David accords, just in case anyone doubted it, and it can only help Hamas with Palestinian voters to be embraced by the new power next door, now the vanguard of the Arab Spring. Just within the past few hours, a Hamas spokesman not only predicted a landslide over Fatah in the next parliamentary elections but hinted that they might challenge Mahmoud Abbas by nominating their own presidential candidate. No wonder the group’s reportedly thinking of moving its headquarters from Damascus to Cairo. (Well, that and the chaos in Syria.) The grander strategy here, I take it, is to pressure western countries that are eager to domesticate the Brotherhood into granting Hamas more legitimacy as a condition of that domestication. Erdogan, the MB’s Turkish role model, has been shilling for Hamas for years but he’s not going to walk away from the west over that point of disagreement. Would the Brotherhood, especially when they’re facing electoral pressure from the Salafists to be even more hardline in their Islamism? Or will the prospect of losing sweet, sweet western foreign aid make them inch away from Hamas too?

Long story short, the choice in Egypt right now is between these nuts, a military that defends the practice of stomping women half to death in the streets, and the Wahhabist faction that wants to Talibanize the country. We’ve arrived at a glorious moment, my friends, where Yasser Arafat’s party is now the best hope of moderation in Palestinian and Egyptian politics. Exit question: Why are the Salafists, of all people, suddenly hinting they might uphold the peace treaty with Israel? A hint to the west that they can bought off too, or is there something else going on?

Breaking on Hot Air

Blowback

Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.

Islamofascism is Nazi fascism all over again. What would happen if Islam ruled the world? We know what would happen to the Jews. Instead of Heil Hitler it would be Allah Akbar. Instead of party members and nonmembers, you’ll have Muslims and infidels. Instead of the Hitler youth you’d have madrassas. Instead of brownshirts you’d have jihadis and suicide bombers. Instead of Mein Kampf you’d have the Koran. Instead of Hitler you’d have Mohammed.

And for writing this I’d either have some limb amputated, be whipped and jailed, or executed.

The Muslim Brotherhood began as a social and religious organization in Egypt whose members regarded Islam as a way of life. Many Syrian supporters founded their own branches in Syria, one of which was the Aleppo branch, founded in 1935. The Aleppo branch eventually became the Syrian headquarters of the Brotherhood. The Brotherhood expanded its political involvement as the Party of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hizb al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun.
(More…)

Exit question: Why are the Salafists, of all people, suddenly hinting they might uphold the peace treaty with Israel? A hint to the west that they can bought off too, or is there something else going on?

They’re lying. They have no intention of honoring the treaty with Israel.

One of the Islamists’ most common forms of negotiating in bad faith involves faking a willingness to concede an important point in order to gain a series of concessions. Then, once they have in hand all they can expect to get without actually following through, they refuse, typically reciting some preposterous irrelevancy as the reason.

Negotiating in bad faith is one thing these evil scumbags have down to an art form. It is an integral part of their culture. It is who they are, it is what they do. After all the Prophet himself said it was not only permitted, but a duty of believers to deceive the infidels if it advances the cause of Islam. And when they aren’t busy deceiving us, they practice on each other.

the salafists and the muslim brotherhood are one in the same..they both want sharia law..the brotherhood pretends to be moderate but we all know they aren’t..the salafists don’t pretend at all..i’d say that’s the only outside difference between the two

Exit question: Why are the Salafists, of all people, suddenly hinting they might uphold the peace treaty with Israel? A hint to the west that they can bought off too, or is there something else going on?

Well the people had an Election and decided who is best to lead them…America needs to butt out and mind our business

liberal4life on December 26, 2011 at 8:43 PM

Oh no we don’t…………before our election here……..after the blood has spilled from the Arab Spring….and our leader’s chant about all of the democracy sprouting all over the middle east still rings in our ears…you and the lsm will have forgotten everything you have said…and we, will have to butt in…and remind you!

Thanks. There are simple ways to deal with bad faith negotiating tactics, all of which appear to be unknown to the geniuses in the State Department.

For example, when the Salafists in Egypt float the idea they might honor the terms of the treaty with Israel, smile and tell them how happy you are to hear it. But don’t just take their word for it. Don’t reward them with a boatload of money or goods or immediately pressure Israel to make a concession, which has been SOP for the State Department lately. Instead, offer them a small concession on some point you know is important to them. Don’t give it to them, offer it to them. When they indicate they would accept, request something small but important in return. If they refuse, their bad faith is apparent. If they accept, proceed with another step.

Negotiating is part science and part art, but the basics aren’t rocket science. Unfortunately, we don’t appear to have anyone with negotiating skills handling these situations in the Obama administration. For that matter, those skills were scarce during the Bush years too.

So who will win the battle after Israel is gone. Will it be the Shai or Sunni or will different sects within each fight among each other even before they get a chance to fight Israel end it all. MB and Hamas will put join until something happens and some new splinter group will take up arms against each other before they even get a chance to attack anyone but there own fellow Muslims.

If Iran and its twelvers try to get any influence in Egypt with the go between of Hamas someone will not take to kind to that.

Egypt will go a stage like Mexico, with the headless bodies everywhere of fighting gangs not of drugs trade but for which Imam and sect has control over the power Sharia Law.

Khaled Mashaal is the leader of the Hamas Politburo – that is what THEY call it. Here is Merriam-Webster’s definition of “politburo:” the principal policy-making and executive committee of a Communist party. So why would Israel want to negotiate with something like that – and add in the fact that Hamas is chartered for the purpoe of Israel’s destruction.

And Arafat’s old comrade-in-arms, Abu Mazen (Mahmoud Abbas) wants to let Hamas into Fatah’s inner circle? They already showed their true colors in Gaza. What is he thinking and who does he think he is kidding?

I think he is so old that he is getting senile. Maybe Alzheimer’s. His actions show a definite disconnect with reality.

Ans the Brotherhood renounced violence, but supports “resistance” against Israel. What hypocrisy! They’ve just been afraid to raise their heads up while Mubarak was in charge of Egypt.

Like rickyricardo commented at the top, there will be a blood-letting, and one like that hasn’t been seen in any of our lifetimes. Islam is in the long-term a self-defeating religion, but they have the ability to make life miserable for everyone around them while they go at each other.

Thanks. I’m not Jewish or Israeli. I am a native Hoosier and a Yankee, but both my parents were from the South, so I have many of the sensibilities and manners of a Southerner. Feels a bit schizophrenic at times, but I feel at home in both cultures, which is definitely a plus.